The challenge to BYU's accreditation has hit the presses!! Let's see what happens! Theoretically it's OK to be gay at BYU, but not everybody got the memo. In the meantime, FreeBYU has started posting profiles.
And what is the CoCJoL-dS up to these days? I mean, besides conference. Not what you might guess!
The top guys are still a bit wary of technology and the future. (Fortunately, now members are allowed to be gay on Facebook.) Doubts are the big danger to what the church offers: some big Read more [...]

This week's biggest topic was Elder Christofferson's talk about how it's now (sort of?) OK for faithful Mormons to support gay marriage. See this great analysis:
Oops, he does go ahead and mention that by short term he really means “all of mortal life” – and then he doesn’t bother to remind you that on the issue of homosexuality, the “commandments and principles” of the church are that it is 1) an immoral sexual perversion 2) something which can be eliminated through the process of Read more [...]

The Presbyterian Church voted today to alter its stance on marriage:
Marriage involves a unique commitment between two people, traditionally a man and a woman, to love and support each other for the rest of their lives.
This is the kind of definition that attempts to blend the old with the new, kind of like how the LDS Church has taken steps to publicly support LGBT rights, but not marriage/same-sex intimacy.
The difference is that whereas the Presbyterian Church now actually welcomes Read more [...]

Another blogger has been threatened with excommunication! Kirk Van Allen criticized D&C 132 and was told by local leaders to delete or modify the post, or else! (Don't miss FAIR's 31-page rebuttal!)
In addition to that story, Nearing Kolob has been doing some really interesting investigation into the changes in the missionary iPad program:
they want to teach missionaries how to protect themselves from pornography while they are on their mission, so they can know how to avoid it when they go Read more [...]

Remember the fun we had last week with creative apologetics? Well, this week we learned that it's only fun and games until someone actually tries to follow the footnotes and gets sucked into the vortex!
It started on a fascinating note as Runtu provided an detailed and specific analysis of the evidence (or lack thereof) behind the claims made by Meg Stout in her Faithful Joseph series. Interestingly, her own footnotes frequently make it clear that her proposed narrative is just speculation. I Read more [...]

A little girl lies dying in her bed as her family bustles about their individual activities. Once it's too late, all of the other members of the family are left with reasons to blame themselves -- any one of them could have made slightly different choices and prevented the child's death. That's the tragic opening of Carys Bray's brilliant debut novel A Song for Issy Bradley.
I picked up this book -- despite the fact that I generally don't like reading about small children (or their parents) dying Read more [...]

This past week we were treated to what is possibly the most delicious new apologetic argument since the tapir! Take it away, Meg Stout:
It all boils down to the one admission from Emily, where she responded “Yes sir.” when asked if she had engaged in carnal intercourse with Joseph Smith.
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Carnal refers to meat. Intercourse refers to commerce or trade (ever visited Intercourse, PA?). Therefore “carnal intercourse” would also be a legitimate description of passing Joseph a platter Read more [...]

So, nothing dramatic happened in the Mormonspace in the past week, but the community became more polarized in the wake of John Dehlin's excommunication. Runtu found Elder Holland's discourse surprisingly defensive -- and David T found it disingenuous -- whereas Geoff B found it reassuring. Oh, and a stream of people on the fringes headed for the church exits:
I don’t want to have to choose between honesty and my church membership – nor do I expect to. But John’s excommunication has made Read more [...]

What a week! By now you know the excommunication axe finally fell on John Dehlin!! How could you not know? -- Dehlin is a man with an impressive list of press contacts (see the transcript in the New York Times!). The CoJCoL-dS must have known that X'ing JD would just hand him the moral high ground while making the church look bad in the process -- yet they did it anyway!!! Why? Why? Why???
Get set for analysis of this question from all over blogspace! Plus loads of podcasts! :D
The danger Read more [...]

The results are in!! Here are the folks who will be taking home a coveted Brodie Award this year!! Naturally I especially want to congratulate the winners, but there were so many great nominations this year (and so many tight races) that I'd like to congratulate everyone who participated! (The final numbers and links to all nominees are here on the voting page.)
Year-long awards for people and websites:
Best New Blog: Funny Mormon Memes
Best Discussion Forum: Exmormon Reddit
Best Humor/Satire Read more [...]